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Proposal: Jon + Avila

A short time ago, I was contacted by my buddy Sterling (@ster_ling on Instagram), and he put me in touch with one of his friends, who in turn referred me to one of her friends named Jon. Turns out that this friend of a friend of a friend was about to pop the question to his girlfriend Avila. We decided on Corona Heights for the location, which is a great vista point to see the Northeastern/Eastern sides of the city. It can be quite the hike to get up there though, depending on which path you take. I got up there early to scope the place out (even though I had been there many times before) and figure out the best positioning and camera settings. Some of the couple's friends also were there to set up a picnic for them.

The setup.

When everything was in place, the friends left, and shortly afterwards, Jon and Avila showed up. Now, bear in mind that this is the first time I had seen either of them in person, and Avila didn't even know who I was. Jon had told me that he would pop the question pretty soon after getting there, so I was ready. First, he started by reading her some undoubtedly sweet, heartfelt words from a handwritten note:

When Jon was done reading the note, he of course got down on one knee and took out the high-value-stone-set, finger-circumference-sized band of gold out, and asked the magical question. What was her answer? I'll let you discern for yourself:

I was snapping photos like crazy, and at this point, I made my presence known by moving in to get some closer shots. There were also other people at the park during this whole time, and they were cheering and calling congratulations.

When I deemed the time to be right, I briefly introduced myself to both of them, and went over some logistical details with Jon really quickly, and then I made my exit. As you can see, the proposal was successful, and Jon and Avila will be getting married in the Spring! Congratulations Jon and Avila!